What is it that makes us constantly want to improve the kit we have??

[Moonshane]

We've all probably got G.A.S (Gear Acquisition Syndrome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) ...

very true and a great post. I'll read it once I have looked at some more gear.

some great responses and all very similar in many ways - I feel at home.

[Richard C]

It's the bit that says we've all got mild obcessive compulsive disorder that makes me laugh every time.

[planetdnb]

I upgrade in what I believe to be the pursuit of excellence. or possibly incompetence!

[MorningMajor]

It's probably the fear of thinking we might be missing something!

[John]

It's probably the fear of thinking we might be missing something!

I think there is a lot in that - "the grass always seems greener on the other side of the fence"

When I started in the hobby there was no internet - the only place I could find astro equipment advertised was in the Scientific & Technical section of Exchange and Mart.

Then the Astronomy Now magazine was launched and that had a classifieds section which started to really whet the appetite - but there was always a delay in posting an ad and it being published (could be a month or more) so that slowed the pace of buying and selling and made you think about things more carefully I think.

When the WWW arrived followed by e.bay and online astro buy & sell websites, the immediacy increased massively. A few minutes thought, some digi camera snaps, and some mouse clicks could see you changing your kit completely, almost on a whim.

I've been in the hobby just over 30 years. I owned 3 scopes in the first 20 years of that - over the past 10 years over 20 more scopes have come and gone from my possession

And I don't even want to think about the eyepieces ........

What's driven me, I think, is trying to get the best quality equipment that I could for the funds I had available at the time. The vast majority of the kit I've owned was bought 2nd hand and sold at something close to what I paid for it, so the total investment has not been as much as it might have been, by any means. All the same I'm not about to work out what I have spent over the years .......

[perrin6]

Why lust after new kit...

Because 'it's there'

Because 'the other man's grass is always greener'

Because we tend to look at a glass as half empty rather than half full

Sometimes I wonder if I'm motivated to improve upon the sense of sight - like wanting a better sound system that reveals more sonic detail or an HD television or tastier food etc.

Or - because we are sad, lonely creatures who desperately want to be freed from the bonds of Mother Earth and set sail amongst the stars - we cant afford a rocket so we want to get closer and closer views instead (Or is that just me ?!?)

[Demonperformer]

Thinking specifically of telescopes, most of my changes have been because I did not think through the original purchase enough. For example, the 10" dob I bought because "it will be easy to put it in the back of the car and take it to a dark site". I am currently in the process of trying to sell my ST-80 and replace it with an ED80. The ST was purchased as a "cheap" widefield imaging scope ... need I say more?

[twotter]

For me it's a case of gradually personalising my kit so it gives me maximum bang for the buck, without spending money on features that I don't want or need.

So I may upgrade to a goto dob mount but I'm very unlikely to join the Televue EP club

[Moonshane]

For me it's a case of gradually personalising my kit so it gives me maximum bang for the buck, without spending money on features that I don't want or need.

So I may upgrade to a goto dob mount but I'm very unlikely to join the Televue EP club

excellent points. don't forget that you can join the TV club for about £40-50 if you buy a used plossl and even a used T2 Nagler was for sale on here recently for £105. they are SOOOO green and shiney (said in a hypno voice ). using your philosophy, it would be worth a try to get a used TV plossl next time you need an eyepiece to fill a gap and see if they are different to your current ones. I bet you'd like them.

[John]

I see a telescope as two optical instruments (3 if you include the eye !). You have the optical tube with it's mirrors, lenses, or a mixture of both then you have the eyepiece. The quality of what you see depends on the quality of both these optical instuments and that they are well matched. So I've tried, budget permitting, to get the best optical quality that I can in both departments.

A question that gets asked a lot is "will I notice the difference if I spend more ?". My feeling is that for 90% of the time the views can be very similar however soon you start chasing the objects that are at the far edge of the performance capabilities of the kit, the observing conditions, and your eye. It's then that quality shines though IMHO - that faint galaxy, that tiny Saturnian moon, the subtle planetary detail, that tight, unequal double star, E & F Trapezium, those craterlets in Plato crater on the moon, etc ,etc.

My thinking has been, if the budget allows, why deprive myself of the chance of seeing these things ?

[Nexus 6]

I see a telescope as two optical instruments (3 if you include the eye !). You have the optical tube with it's mirrors, lenses, or a mixture of both then you have the eyepiece. The quality of what you see depends on the quality of both these optical instuments and that they are well matched. So I've tried, budget permitting, to get the best optical quality that I can in both departments.

A question that gets asked a lot is "will I notice the difference if I spend more ?". My feeling is that for 90% of the time the views can be very similar however soon you start chasing the objects that are at the far edge of the performance capabilities of the kit, the observing conditions, and your eye. It's then that quality shines though IMHO - that faint galaxy, that tiny Saturnian moon, the subtle planetary detail, that tight, unequal double star, E & F Trapezium, those craterlets in Plato crater on the moon, etc ,etc.

My thinking has been, if the budget allows, why deprive myself of the chance of seeing these things ?

Brilliant answer John, is it not the same for any hobby?, tweak a bit here and my car will perform better, if I get that cable or speakers I could hear just a little bit more on my new favourite album(not so much the case now in the Digital Era!), get that new Top of the Range Flat Screen from Panasonic rather than the one thats half the price and the Picture will be faultless rather than, thats not bad. you pays your money.....

Alan

[markophoto]

My answer.....all of the above.

So much of that rings true. Got to find something to dispose of that disposal income on eh?

[yesyes]

I guess for me it's the frustration of not being able to use the scope as often as I want due to weather. But then, when it's cloudy, I can't just forget about that hobby and want to do something that can be done even with clouded skies. So I buy stuff, fiddle with it, build rain and cloud sensors for my obs (when I haven't even bought a house yet to build an obs at), light boxes.... ;-)

[Moonshane]

LOL. Just relocated this thread and I am still the same. I have changed a lot of my kit since then, mainly due to getting into solar observing although my three dobs are still with me. Eyepiece have mostly all come and gone other than my nagler zoom and my 26mm Nagler. Be interested in the views of newer members to see if they are 'feeling the urge' yet.

[faulksy]

8 minutes ago, Moonshane said:

LOL. Just relocated this thread and I am still the same. I have changed a lot of my kit since then, mainly due to getting into solar observing although my three dobs are still with me. Eyepiece have mostly all come and gone other than my nagler zoom and my 26mm Nagler. Be interested in the views of newer members to see if they are 'feeling the urge' yet.

funny how things dont change shane lol.

[Stu]

17 minutes ago, Moonshane said:

LOL. Just relocated this thread and I am still the same. I have changed a lot of my kit since then, mainly due to getting into solar observing although my three dobs are still with me. Eyepiece have mostly all come and gone other than my nagler zoom and my 26mm Nagler. Be interested in the views of newer members to see if they are 'feeling the urge' yet.

I realize I'm not a newer member Shane, but your post was too coincidental to a thought of mine today that I have to comment!

I have been through vast amount of kit, changing things frequently, some good decisions, some bad but many recently financially driven ie I needed some free cash so I sold a load of stuff!

The thing that occurred to me today, is that for solar White Light and planetary observing at least I have a fixed set of kit which just works, is easy to setup and consistently delivers great results. It's nice not to have to think about it and just get on with it, knowing that I've tried each option and am getting the best I can out of my kit.

Strangely, the EQ platform has turned out to be quite a revelation. It means I don't have to fire up the Vixen GP if I'm just doing solar, planetary or lunar observing with the Tak. I'm also settled on using the barlowed Binoviewers for Solar and lunar, and the barlowed Lieca Zoom for Planetary observing, in both cases they work beautifully. Likewise the Portaball on the EQ is very quick to setup and gives me tracking on higher mag targets.

I think my message is something like 'don't lose sight of the main aim in your rush to change things about.' Now I'm more settled I'm doing more observing which is more productive than ever before I think.

I am categorically NOT saying I'm not changing my kit ever again, but I am saying it would need to be very carefully considered before I do. Famous last words....

[Moonshane]

Ha ha, yes of course this thread is for all members 

Your comment gets at the knub of the issue I think Stu. It's a lack of use (or poor conditions) that creates the grass is greener thinking. I always have a wish list about a side of A4 long. I think mine stands at about £2k worth of gear despite what I have!

[Piero]

It's an interesting question. I'll try my best not to sound harsh with my answer as eventually we are talking about our hobby (and our money).

I am not a person who is keen to constantly upgrade / update his kit. I rarely look at astro buy and sell, very rarely at the classified section. I am not saying that looking at telescopes or eyepieces of other members is not interesting. It is, but to me it is more like viewing cars on a street. If I see a Ferrari, I would say "It's a pretty car" but I don't bother to have one. Okay, I have more interest in astronomy than cars, but the point that I want to make is that I don't bother to have a shop of astronomy equipment at home. I am also firmly convinced that the more one owns the less this is used! So, all comes back to the point of having a functional equipment rather than having the best equipment to me. The functional equipment is the one which get used the most. The best equipment... does this really exist? The best equipment is the one we believe we need when we are purchasing or deciding to purchase, but then we shortly realise that there is something better or suspect that someone else has something better. And so? Does this affect our hobby or our views so much? 

I think most of us actually have two hobbies at least: astronomy (visual or imaging or both) and gear. This is not a blame from my side. To me people are free to spend / invest their money how they like. For visual, the best gear is not actually needed unless one is constantly observing thresholds targets. What is needed is good information, which can be retrieved via a forum like this, books, Internet, or the subscription to an astro club. Also, what is needed is perseverance, the willing to observe despite the cold and tiredness after a tough day at work. The best gear is a way for ourself to see great equipment in our living room and be proud that we are doing things properly. Unless this develops in a pathology, there is nothing wrong with it, as long as it is clear that not all of this is necessary.

So why one would fear that his/her equipment needs to be improved? To me, because, in the end, after long stressful days at work, after dedicating a lot of time to our family (for those who have one), after earning some money, we need to do something for ourself! Astronomy is certainly relaxing, and, culturally and emotionally rewarding. However astronomy is also a tough hobby because it is practised in the evening / night conflicting with resting and sleeping, in the cold and humid hours of the day, and because requires knowledge, effort and dedication at the eyepiece. Easily one would prefer not to observe if the evening is felt not to be the right one! Easily one would refuse to stick his/her eye at the lens of an eyepiece for more than 20 minutes hoping that some more detail will eventually come out. And often one is told that that Ethos reveals more subtle detail to that member's eye, or that those 4 inches will make the difference showing that grey blob as our hoped and imagined textbook globular cluster which appears so rich in pin point stars! I think it is quite easy to see that sitting in front of a computer, reading about other members' equipment is far easier than spending a night out under an average sky, in the cold, looking at grey blobs. And some people cannot even spot those greys due to the bad weather or excessive light pollution! So we end up frustrated because we love astronomy but we want it to be better! And that is! The review about that new eyepiece comes out and shows how great the views are (although little attention is spent on the different atmospheric conditions and location!). And finally, if we cannot observe for one reason or the other, well we do astro-shopping..!

How to improve this situation? Well, it is well known.. A tank of oil, pack the telescope, go to a dark location, and enjoy the gems in the sky rather than spending time about the inaccuracies of our tools. How many really do this? ... unfortunately only the bravest and devoted ones! 

[John]

I've looked back at my previous contribution to this thread and I think I still feel the same way.

High levels of spend is far from essential though. You can have a lot of enjoyment from this hobby with a couple of hundred quids worth of gear and thats really worth remembering.

 

 

[saac]

It's the nature of astronomy, there's always a need to get a better view.  Beside the TV is rubbish now

 

Jim

[Beulah]

Think I'm happy with the gear; it's extra energy I need.

The demands of the day leaves me desperately tired by 9pm.

[Gina]

To me the answer is obvious - to get ever better results

[cloudsweeper]

It just feels good to have a wide range of gear to go about observation and to make slight changes to your viewing parameters.  Then we believe that dearer EPs or whatever will enhance the pleasure, albeit by a small degree.  But again, it continues to feel good. If that ever stops, I'll pack it in!

And of course, knowledge and experience keep growing throughout this process.

I'm already looking to a fast frac for panoramic views of brighter objects!

Doug.

[swamp thing]

On 5 May 2016 at 00:41, Piero said:

 

How to improve this situation? Well, it is well known.. A tank of oil, pack the telescope, go to a dark location, and enjoy the gems in the sky rather than spending time about the inaccuracies of our tools. How many really do this? ... unfortunately only the bravest and devoted ones! 

^^^This is the only way I "improve" my kit. It is also the only way I observe nowadays and TBH I've no interest in doing astronomy any other way. 
Not sure I'm braver or more devoted than anyone else. Probably just more stubborn and won't put up with so-so views from okay.....ish skies.

[Piero]

11 minutes ago, swamp thing said:

^^^This is the only way I "improve" my kit. It is also the only way I observe nowadays and TBH I've no interest in doing astronomy any other way. 
Not sure I'm braver or more devoted than anyone else. Probably just more stubborn and won't put up with so-so views from okay.....ish skies.

You are right, I think I need to apologise for the unclear sentence. Many of use take this hobby very seriously, although always with fun of course. But... most of us would not drive 2-3h for reaching a dark location every time they want to observe. For many reasons: family, lack of time, no keen to drive so long distances, laziness, etc. 

Possibly doing so is being stubborn, but from my point of view at least, this is called serious passion.